Rain
by Obi the Kid
Summary: Pre-TPM. Obi-Wan is 14 . Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan face off against a new enemy. Rain.


TITLE: Rain

SUMMARY: Pre-TPM. (Obi-Wan is 14). Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan face off against a new enemy. Rain.

AUTHOR: Obi the Kid G

MY WEBSITE: The characters and venue of Star Wars are copyrighted to Lucas Films Limited. The characters not recognizable from this venue are copyrighted to Tracy C. Knight. The story is the intellectual property of Tracy C. Knight and is copyrighted to her. She makes no profit from the writing or distribution of this story.

**Rain**

"Master, it's raining."

"I can see that, Obi-Wan. Thank you."

"That transport left us here."

"Yes, Padawan, I know."

"Why did they do that?"

"I don't know."

"Do you think another will be here soon to pick us up?"

"I don't know, Obi-Wan."

"I'm getting wet, Master."

"As am I."

"They should make these robes water repellant."

"Perhaps you should bring that up when the council debriefs us about this mission."

"We failed in our mission, Master. I don't think the council will be happy."

"I don't suspect that they will, Obi-Wan."

"It's raining harder."

"Thank you for the update."

"What do we do no one shows up? We're in the middle of nowhere. Mr. Kauto was serious when he told us that if he didn't like our methods of negotiation that he would take us and drop us off in some remote location so that we could no longer interfere."

"He is a man of his word it seems, Padawan."

"Your hair looks funny when it's all wet."

"Obi-Wan, how about we just sit down here in silence for a while. Meditate. This is a good test in patience for you."

"Yes, Master."

Silence reigned over the soaked pair for a short time. A very short time.

"Master, I can't meditate with water pelting me in the head. It stings my face. And it's cold."

"Try harder."

"I did try. And you can't meditate either, I can tell. I know you won't admit that you are cold. But I can see you shivering under your waterlogged robe."

"I am very cold, Obi-Wan. But I am trying to concentrate on not being cold. Please do not talk about it."

"My teeth hurt from chattering. I want to go home now, Master."

"I know you do. But we are in a dilemma at the moment. And I don't know what to do about it. We must…be patient."

"But, Master…"

"Please, Obi-Wan. Try. I know you are cold and wet and probably hungry. But you must do your best to deal with our situation."

"I wasn't hungry until you said that. I didn't get to eat this morning before we were thrown out of the mediation building."

Qui-Gon reached into this belt pouch and pulled out a soggy grain bar.

"Here. That's all we have."

"I think that's waterlogged too."

"It's edible though."

Obi-Wan made short work of the bar. It didn't do much to stop his stomach from growling, but it helped.

"No one knows we are here, Master. Except for Mr. Kauto and his driver. Do you think they will take pity on us and send someone to get us?"

"No, I don't. Mr. Kauto is a most uncooperative man. And he keeps his word. We will not be helped out of this predicament by the one who put us here."

"Maybe the rain will stop soon and we can walk for help."

"You saw the same forecast I did for this region before we left. This is their rainy season. We're lucky it's only rain and not wind and hail,as they are prone to having here."

"Then we'll have to walk in the rain."

"Where shall we walk, Obi-Wan? I see no glimpse of any area to which me might go. We are many miles from the city. The ride here was over two hours. We cannot walk."

"Master…it's hailing now."

"Yes, I can feel that."

"And the wind is picking up."

"I can feel that as well, Padawan."

"I can't feel my feet. They're numb."

"As are mine."

"Maybe the temple will realize we are missing."

"We were expected to check in once a day. Perhaps when several days pass and they do not hear anything from us, they will get suspicious and send another team to investigate."

"I like that, Master. Let's go with that one. It sounds like a promising theory."

"Let's hope it's more than just a theory."

Silence came again from the pair. They backed up against a small tree, not so much that it offered shelter, because it didn't. But it offered a brace for Qui-Gon to lean against. Obi-Wan huddled next to his teacher. It offered little warmth, but it was better than nothing. Darkness came to the planet. Cold rain, wind and occasional hail continued.

"It's very dark here, Master."

"You have an annoyingly inane ability to say the most obvious thing, don't you, Obi-Wan?"

"Sorry."

"I know."

"I'm cold, Master."

Qui-Gon put an arm around the small shoulders of the boy and offered what little he could.

"Think warm thoughts."

"Like our mission to Molta last year? I've never seen so many volcanoes in one area like that. Almost like they were fighting for space. Sure was hot there. And you made me wear my robe everywhere we went."

"It was the custom of their people for outsiders to remain covered. It wasn't my decision."

"And then we were on Burnas for the meeting with Senator Yingie Yo or something like that."

"That was Yingis Yao, Obi-Wan. Not Yingie Yo."

"Close enough. He said their planet was undergoing some type of warming trend because of the pollution problem, but they all seemed fine with it. I was the only one dehydrating because of the sweat pouring off of me."

"Now, I did tell you then that you could go without your robe. That was your choice to keep it on."

"Yes, because those girls kept staring at me and trying to touch my chest and my…my…rear end. What was wrong with them?"

"That was a very 'free' planet, shall we say?"

"Oh and then we were on Smoldis II a few months ago. Remember they had this thing about fire. They intentionally set forest fires to help their environment. But they had so many burning at one time, that we had to sleep in fire resistant bunkers in case the houses were burnt down during the night."

"Yes, and your robe was burned to a crisp our second night there."

"Master, there are some strange people in this galaxy."

"Many would say the same about you and I, Padawan. It all depends on your point of view."

"Yeah, well, my point of view is that I'm cold and wet and hungry and miserable. Thinking warm thoughts didn't help much."

"Perhaps thinking cold thoughts would help."

"NO! Please. I just want off this planet. I want my bed. Nice and soft and warm."

"I'm all you have right now, so you may as well deal with it the best you can."

Obi-Wan huddled closer to his master as the rain became heavier. It was a monsoon type downpour that took their shivering to severe levels.

"Master…"

"I know, Padawan. I know you're cold. Once daylight comes, we will try and think this out. There has to be a solution."

"B…before w…wa…weee fffreeze to d…death out here."

Qui-Gon did his best to try and shield Obi-Wan from the worst of the pelting rain. Eventually the boy did fall into a restless sleep. Not long after, the master followed the same path.

When daylight finally came, the rain had let up to a steady shower. The wind and hail had stopped, which made things a tiny bit more bearable. Obi-Wan uncurled himself from his master's arms and stood to stretch his legs. Qui-Gon did the same.

"Come on, Obi-Wan. We'll walk back towards the way we were flown out there. At least we know there is civilization that way. It's days away of course, but it's there. Perhaps someone will find us on the way."

"My robe weighs a ton. My legs are cramping too. My head hurts."

"You're probably getting sick from being exposed to the weather. It's not good for either of us to continue to be out in this. But we have no choice. Let's do what we can. Come, Padawan."

They walked for many hours. Until the daylight began to fail. Every so often Obi-Wan's legs gave out on him and they had to rest. It didn't seem they were making much progress, but it was difficult to tell. The landscape on the planet was much the same as far as they could see.

"Master, isn't that the same tree we left this morning? We went in a big circle, didn't we?"

Qui-Gon's shoulders slumped in defeat. His head had been pounding so hard that it helped lead them right back to where they started.

"Damn it. Yes, it is. I'm sorry, Obi-Wan. I thought I had us going in the right direction. But between our many rests and my head…"

"Your head hurts too, doesn't it?"

"Yes, very much so. If we are getting sick, we are getting sick with the same thing. And at a very bad time. Let's sit and rest here for the night."

"Again."

"Yes, again. I'm very upset with myself for allowing this to happen. This is my fault we are here. Had I read Mr. Kauto correctly and took his threats more seriously, we would not be out here. And then I led us in a circle. We have no food. We are freezing. We are hungry. We are wet. We are miserable."

He sat down with a disgusted thump and leaned against the tree. Running his hands over his soaked hair, he sighed heavily. Obi-Wan felt him admonishing himself through their bond. The Force was of little help to them right now, but at least it kept them linked. And kept them together. The boy sat down next to Qui-Gon and huddled up next to him as he'd done the previous night.

"At least we're together, Master. It's always nice to have company when you're soggy and miserable."

He looked up at his master with a small smile. Qui-Gon returned the smile, and appreciated hisattempt to lighten the mood.

"True, Obi-Wan. Very true. Misery loves company. I suppose that saying actually does have some truth to it after all."

"When we get home, I am going to take the longest hot shower of my life. I don't care if it drains every drop from the temple. That's what I plan on doing."

"Hot tea, Padawan. That's what best warms a body. Hot herbal tea. What I wouldn't give for a nice steaming cup of that right now."

"I think I'd just pour it on my head if I had that. It would warm me up quick. I'd worry about the second degree burns later."

Qui-Gon laughed a genuine laugh. And it felt good. As he did the previous night, he wrapped his arms around Obi-Wan and they did their best to get a bit of rest.

Daylight came again, or so they thought it was daylight. A bright light shining from above woke them. Despite being as rundown as they were, both Jedi jumped to their feet with sabers in hand, ready to defend themselves if necessary.

Defense was not necessary. The light was friendly. It was a ship sent by the council to look for them. Indeed when they had not checked in as they should have for two straight days, help was sent immediately. Yoda had told Qui-Gon before they left Courscant that he'd dealt with Mr. Kauto before. He must have been aware that the man wouldn't hesitate to do something such as this.

The ship landed and the ramp slowly lowered. The rain had increased again. Between the dark and the weather, it was difficult to see the two figures who hurried from the craft towards them. The taller one of the two pulled his hood down and shined a light towards them. It was their good friends, Master Jerra Derson and his apprentice, Taj Elim. The soaked Jedi breathed a sigh of relief. Jerra put and arm around Qui-Gon and pulled him towards the ship. Taj did the same with Obi-Wan.

Obi-Wan melted into the warmth of the ship as soon as he touched foot inside. His legs almost failing him again. He was very grateful that Taj was there to pick him back up. Jerra and Taj quickly stripped them of their wet clothes and offered them dry ones. Then draped them in thick blankets and sat them on a couch in the small lounge area of the ship. Taj offered them each a steaming cup of hot tea. Qui-Gon silently thanked the boy for what he had been dreaming about for two days now.

Taj, shaking the water out of his short black hair, motioned to his teacher. "Master Jerra, I will get us off the planet and towards home. Healer Terran will probably have a couple of new patients when we arrive."

"Thank you, Taj." The tall, slim Jedi Master brushed his damp hair from his face and sat across from his friends, who sat shivering violently on the couch. Despite the quick efforts to get them warm, their bodies had been exposed to the elements for many hours and it would take more than dry clothes and hot tea to get their temperatures stabilized again. But for now, Jerra was appreciative to have his friends alive and on their way home.

"Yoda sent us. He knew something was wrong when you didn't check in."

Qui-Gon shivered his reply.

"Remind m…me t..to t..th..thank him. T…thank you for finding us…J…Jerra. C…cold and wet out there."

"We won't be long getting home. This ship can sail, and it's not a long journey. I'll turn

the heat up in this room, and see how Taj is doing. If you need anything, just hit the

wall-com."

He hurried out, leaving master and padawan alone.

"Master, I'm st…still so c…cold. I d…don't know if I'll ever g…get warm."

Qui-Gon held his arm out to the boy. Obi-Wan smiled and moved a few feet closer to his master. They sat together once more as they had done the past two nights while trying to find some assemblance of warmth. Huddling close to Qui-Gon, Obi-Wan leaned his head against his master's shoulder and fought against the chills still ripping through his body.

"So cold, Master."

"I know. We'll be home soon. All this will be behind us. Rest for a while. Jerra and Taj will get us home safely."

"Yes, Master."

Obi-Wan closed his eyes.

Qui-Gon did the same and called out to the Force to try and wrap a blanket of warmth around them both.

It helped a bit. If only for a short time. Qui-Gon had no doubt that the next week of their lives would be just as miserable. He felt them both succumbing to the illness they'd come down with after the violent weather exposure.

At the very least though, they would be miserable together.

END


End file.
